The Tattooed Flower
by belagay
Summary: Tattoo Artist-Florist AU. Natalia is the lonely and quiet owner of the popular Arlovskaya's Flowers. One day, however, she finds out that tattoo artist Lukas Bondevik is making the empty shop next door his tattoo parlor.
1. Chapter 1

_hi okay so i know this is a mainly norwayxbelarus/norbela fanfiction but there's also some usuk in this so you've been warned. anyway let's start this shit. -elise_

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Monday, February 14th; 4:45 AM

Natalia sits up in her bed, yawning and stretching as she does. She rubs her eyes, and looks over to the clock: way too early for her to be up, but work duties came before sleep. Sooner or later, Alfred would be calling to wake her up, and then they would get coffee, and then they would go to work. Natalia rolls out of bed and puts on her slippers. Just as she's about to go take a shower, her phone rings. She groans and answers.

" _Goooood morning, Vietnam!_ " Alfred yells, making Natalia flinch.

"I'm already up, Alfred." She mumbles, half asleep-ly sitting back down on her bed. "I should be ready in about 20 minutes. Pick me up?"

" _Sure, dude. By the way, did you see the sign on the empty store next door? Some guy got permission to make it his tattoo parlor!_ " Natalia was now fully awake.

"Dear God, tell me I heard you wrong." She says, standing up.

" _Nope; I saw him put the 'COMING SOON' sign up after I left work yesterday. He's kinda cute, and reminds me of you, with blue eyes, pale skin, and he's_ _ **tall**_ _. I think you would like him."_

"There's a door connecting our store and the empty one! How bad will _that_ be for business?" Natalia says, ignoring what Alfred said completely.

" _Nat, you're looking on the dark side. Hey, I've always wanted to get a tattoo like Arthur's..._ "

"You want to get a Fender guitar on your ass...classy; but seriously, I need to get ready. Swing by in 20." And with that, Natalia hung up and quickly walked to the bathroom.

After a quick 10 minutes, Natalia was standing in the bathroom mirror, blow-drying her hair. Judging by the fact that her hair is long and thick, this part took another 10 minutes. She had chosen a simple outfit the night before and quickly put it on. When her long hair is dry, she ties it with a small, dark purple bow. Suddenly, as she grabs her bag and tosses her phone and keys in, a knocking comes from her apartment door.

"Coming! Hold on!" Natalia says, picking up her wallet and placing it in her bag. Quickly grabbing her black half trench coat, she closes the latch to her bag tight, goes over to the door, and opens it to see Alfred standing there, with his bomber jacket. He was leaning against the doorway.

"Ready to go?" He asks, standing up straight. Natalia nods in response.

"But first..." She starts to respond.

"Coffee," They say in unison, starting to walk down the hall to the elevator. Alfred pushes the button, and the door opens with a _ding!_ The two step in, and Natalia runs her fingers through her ponytail. The silence was awkward, but the two friends were used to it. Finally, the elevator gets to the bottom floor. Alfred and Natalia step out, and walk down the street.

"Okay, I just want chamomile tea today." Natalia says as the two walk into the small cafe near the complex. Alfred's smile becomes smaller.

"You okay?" He asks, raising an eyebrow at Natalia. She nods in response.

"Just a little tired. It's Monday; just give me a break." Natalia and Alfred step in line, him next to her.

"To be honest, I want coffee. I'm tired, man. You live far away from me, and I have to get up early and come over, and..."

"Alfred, we live in the same apartment complex: you live two floors under me. Quit whining." Natalia says, smirking.

"Yeah, well, I still have to walk up the stairs..." He grumbles back.

The two walk out a quick time later, holding their drinks. In the cold, mid-February air, the warm drinks felt soothing on their cold hands. The flower shop was a short five minute walk from the cafe. On one side of Arlovskaya's Flowers was a bakery owned by a lovely French couple. On the other side was the empty shop, soon to be a tattoo parlor; doors connected all three stores.

The two friends finally arrive at the flower shop, and Natalia pulls her keychain out and unlocks the door. Alfred steps in, and flips the sign from 'Closed' to 'Open'. Natalia walks over to behind the counter and pulls her laptop from her bag, then putting the bag under the counter. She pulls off her coat and hangs it on its hook, before opening the laptop and pulling her purple apron from its hook, tying it behind her back. Almost right as she started typing away at her laptop and Alfred started spraying some of the flowers with water, a man around 20-something walked in through the side door. In his hand was some sort of large pastry, wrapped in wax paper and still steaming.

"I'm here to pick up an order for Adam Fields." He says as Natalia clicks away at her laptop.

"You're here early..." She mutters. "A bouquet of roses?" She asks, still typing as she looks up at him. Adam nodded and glanced around the shop.

"The deluxe bouquet is $45.00, but you already paid, so that makes things easier. I'll be back in just a minute with your flowers." Natalia steps from behind the counter and smiles again. She goes over to a row of shelves attached to one of the walls with bouquets on them. Looking amongst the name tags attached to the flowers, she finally finds "FIELDS". Picking it up, she walks back over, behind the counter.

"Here you go. So, why do you need the flowers, may I ask?" Natalia asks, handing him the roses.

"Oh... well, my girlfriend and I are going out to dinner tonight at that new restaurant in town, The Midnight Sun. I'm planning on engaging to her then." He explains.

"Then why do you have that?" Alfred looks over his shoulder and points to the wax paper wrapped item.

"This? I'm making her breakfast. These are some croissants, and I'm going to try and make something else before she wakes up in..." Adam stops to look at his watch. "Around an hour,"

"Good luck! Come back later, and tell us how it goes!" Natalia says, waving at Adam, who waves back and leaves through the front door.

Around 5:30, Natalia and Alfred untie their aprons, hang them on the respective hooks, and begin to pack up.

"Are you going to do anything with Arthur tonight? Maybe take him out to a fancy restaurant?" Natalia asks, buckling up her bag.

"Actually, since he's at work until 8, I'm going to make him a nice dinner." Alfred starts to speak again, but is cut off.

"I'll help cook," Natalia says, her head popping up. He chuckles, and zips up his jacket.

"I was just about to ask you that. I have everything bought already; we're going to make steak, paired with the finest wine, served atop of mashed potatoes with a side of asparagus and bread." Alfred says in a faux French-accent, pulling on his black gloves.

"That'll take some time to make... let's just head straight to your place; I won't bother dropping off my stuff at mine." Natalia puts on her coat, and then her bag, before walking out into the cold February evening air. The sun was starting to set, and the sky was a beautiful mixture of lavender, sky blue, and a royal navy. Hardly anyone was driving, and the streetlights had just turned on. The two walked side by side along the side of the road, with Natalia walking closer to the road, due to Alfred's rational fear of being run over. The only sound came from their feet on the pavement and the sound of the occasional car passing by. Quicker than usual, the two got to the complex. Natalia walks in, and holds the door open for Alfred. Once they get to the stairs, they tacitly agree to race up to Alfred's apartment, pushing and shoving each other as they do. As they run down the hall, feeling like little kids again, people stick their heads out, silently judging the two. Natalia ends up winning, and catches her breath at the door while she waits. Once he gets there, he sticks out his key. Natalia takes it, and unlocks the door. She drops her bag in pure confusion.

"Arthur?" She asks, picking up her bag once again and placing it on the counter. "We thought you were still at work!"

"You thought I wouldn't come off early? I'm personally offended. I meant to surprise Alfred by making dinner, but obviously that didn't happen..." He explains, glancing at Natalia and walking over to a table he had set out nicely, blowing out the red candles that had been lit. "Why are you here, Nat?" He asks, looking at Alfred as he walked in and closed the door.

"Al asked if I could cook for you guys...speaking of cooking, what did you make?" She inquires, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow.

"Twenty bucks he used the stuff we were going to use." Alfred says, laughing. Arthur kicks him in the shin lightly.

"As a matter of fact, I didn't. I used those steaks in the fridge, and made other stuff." Natalia looks over Arthur's shoulder to the table, where steak, various vegetables, and mashed potatoes were divided onto two plates. She sighs and drops her arm.

"That _was_ the stuff we were going to use; well, I guess I'm no longer needed. Don't have _too_ rough of sex tonight!" She says, slinging her bag over her shoulder. Arthur reaches his arm out and starts to say something, but Natalia just leaves and closes the door behind her. As quietly as she can, she walks down the hall and to the stairs, where she goes down two flights. She walks to her apartment, and unlocks the door. All was silent and dark, except for the small lamp she kept on so she could see at night. She flips on the main light and kicks off her shoes, bending over to put them straight next to the door. Once she stands up, her black cat, Pixel, meows loudly and comes running over to Natalia, who picks her up and cradles her like a baby. Pixel nuzzles her head against Nat's chest. The two go into her room, where she sets Pixel down on her bed. Natalia changes into her pajamas and slips on her slippers. Once again, she picks up Pixel, and takes her to the kitchen. Placing her on on of the stools sat at one edge of the small square counter-top island, Natalia opens the fridge, looking for something to eat. Too tired to eat anything large, she closes the fridge and grabs an apple from the fruit bowl. Holding it in her mouth, she picks up Pixel and walks over to the couch, where she sits down and turns on the TV. Putting on a movie, she sits there, contemplating about the day, and how she was spending her Valentine's Day with an apple, her cat, and Notting Hill.

The next day at work was a simple one; the only exciting part was Adam rushing in, ring on his finger, grin on his face:

"She said yes."


	2. Chapter 2

Saturday, February 21st; 7:27 PM

Natalia blows her whistle, causing the whole gymnasium to go silent.

"You guys have been practicing since 4, so congrats. You're done. Go. Beg your parents for ice cream or McDonald's or _something_." She says, and kids begin to leave.

"Wait! Abby!" Natalia suddenly yells. A brunette girl with a French braid looks at her, then comes walking over.

"I know you're tired, but, do you think you could try and stay an extra 10 or 20 minutes after practice every other day? I feel you could use a little extra help. Don't feel bad about it: Emily is doing it as well."

"Oh, I don't get tired at all during practice! And I would need to ask my dad, but I'm sure he'll say yes!" Abby responds enthusiastically, before running off to the bleachers. Natalia smiles and goes to her small office. She takes off the whistle and tosses it in her bag, before closing it and putting it on her back. She walks out, and locks the door as she does, then walks through the door, leaving the gymnasium. Natalia goes down the short hallway, and out the main door, only to find Arthur and Alfred standing there, holding hands. As the gymnasium was walking distance from the apartment complex, the two often came and walked back with her so she wouldn't have to walk alone in the dark.

"When are you two going to get married..." Natalia says as she smiles and sighs at the same time. The trio starts walking, now with Arthur blushing furiously and Alfred grinning like a doofus. Natalia smiles at the two as they come to a stop a quick 2-minute walk later at Woodlands'. The three walk inside, Natalia going to the stairs and Arthur and Alfred going to the elevator.

"See you guys Monday." She says, opening the door to the stairwell and waving.

Natalia unlocks the door to her dark apartment and flips on the light. Immediately, Pixel hops off her throne of cardboard boxes and comes running to Natalia, rubbing against her leg.

"I fed you when I left. I'm not giving you more." She says. Pixel, not giving up, starts purring, moving through Natalia's legs, who groans, and walks over the the cupboard. She takes out a small bag, full of treats, and tosses one onto a cardboard box. Pixel perks up and dashes over, quickly eating it.

Natalia drags her feet as she walks to her room. She drops her bag by her bed, and changes into her pajamas. Natalia goes back into her small living room, and grabs Pixel off of her box, and carries her back to her bedroom. Natalia plops her on the chair, and then crawls into her bed, along with her phone. Pixel comes running, hops up next to her, and curls up into ball. Natalia flips her lamp off, and puts her phone on her bedside table, not-so-ready for work the next day.


	3. Chapter 3

Sunday, February 22nd; 5:20 AM

Natalia and Alfred, side by side, walk up to the trio of stores, shocked: the lights in the tattoo parlor were on, a nice looking neon-sign was up, and there was someone walking about inside. Natalia quickly unlocks Arlovskaya's Flowers and walks inside, dropping her bag on the counter. She then opens the never-locked door, walking into the tattoo parlor.

"Oh, hello. I didn't realise you were open on Sundays. Was I too loud? Sorry..." The man said in a quiet voice; he was exactly as Alfred had described him, with pale skin, blue-ish violet eyes, and he _was_ rather tall. He was wearing a black tanktop with some Norwegian death-metal band on it, black jeans, and black hightops; tattoos covered his arms and part of his neck. He was stacking cardboard boxes into one another. On the boxes were various phrases, such as 'Blekk', 'Tilfeldige bøker for folk å lese', and 'Mer tilfeldige ting', all written in Sharpie.

"What do those say?" Natalia asks, trying to make sense of the letters.

" 'Ink', 'Random Books For People To Read', and 'More Random Things', all in Norwegian." The man responds. "Lukas; You?" He outstretches a hand.

"Natalia," She responds, shaking Lukas' hand.

"Is he your boyfriend?" Lukas asks, gesturing at Alfred, who was standing in the doorway, staring into space.

"Alfred? Please... he's gay and dating." Natalia explained. "We dated once, and, no offense to him, but he's not someone I'd like to date again..."

"I heard that." Alfred says, walking over with his hands in his pockets.

"Anyway, nice meeting you two," Lukas says with a slight smile.

"Same, I guess... have you met the folks that own the bakery yet?" Natalia asks, walking out backwards.

"I plan to soon. Thanks." Was Lukas' response as Alfred and Natalia walked back into Arlovskaya's Flowers.

"I knew you would like him," Alfred said, leaning against the counter. Natalia blushes, and pulls out her laptop.

"Gah, why are so many people ordering roses? We're almost busier than we were on Valentine's Day!" Natalia said frustratingly. "Most of them are due tomorrow, so, you're going to get them from the greenhouse."

"Oh God... can we call them? I _hate_ driving that van..." Alfred replied.

"It's 6 AM, the city doesn't wake up until 8. Go. I'll wait for you." Natalia says, not looking up from her laptop. Once Alfred had walked out, slamming the door behind him as he does, she begins to play 'Fairytale'. As she had forgotten to flip the sign to 'Open,' no one came in, and she was free to sing along and dance. Suddenly, around two minutes in, she hears a door open, and someone else begin humming to the music in a quiet voice. She suddenly stops dancing and tries to quickly fix her messed up hair. Lukas smiles.

"Your hair looks fine. You a fan of Alexader Rybak?" He asks. Natalia nods in response.

"Same..." Lukas says. "This was the first song I listened to by him."

"Mine was Foolin'... I was 13. Funny, you don't seem like someone who would listen to him." said Natalia in response. She walks over to her latop, and turns the music off.

"Yeah, most people get that vibe from me; and hey, I can play music just as loud." Lukas says, grinning and walking back into his store. Natalia shakes her head and flips the sign to 'Open'.

"Hey, you boob, I'm back. Now help me carry these in." A familiar voice says. Alfred, using his back to open the door, was carrying around 5 big bouquets of red roses.

"How are you back already? It takes longer than a couple minutes to drive to the greenhouse and back..."  
"Hate to break it to you, sister, I was gone for more than ten minutes." Alfred places the bouquets on the counter. "There's around fifteen still in there. I had to drive that **_disgusting_** van, so you go get them."

While Natalia walks outside and attempts to stack all fifteen bouquets in her arms, she thinks. She couldn't have been dancing, listening to music, and talking to Lukas for that long...

The trio of friends sit around the coffee table Alfred had made. Arthur and Alfred were on a love seat, and Natalia in an armchair. Three boxes of pizza sat on the table, all of them open and empty. Natalia had two slices stacked on top of each other, and was eating them. The TV was on, but the volume low. As "The Golden Girls" played on the TV, Alfred being the only one watching, Arthur chatted with Natalia about how the shop was, how her students were doing, random things like that. This was their routine every Friday, but they never grew tired of it. Eventually, Arthur and Natalia's discussion turned to how they first met, in high school...

The trio of friends had all met at the end of 9th grade, when Natalia's adoptive father had finally let her start school after getting used to the town a bit. Alfred and Arthur still hadn't started dating, and, to be honest, neither of them knew they were gay yet. And the more the three hung out, the more people urged Natalia and Alfred to date, and so they did. And as that went on, the more Alfred realized he was gay: for Arthur in specific. Nat and Al broke up, and Arthur started dating him in secret, with Natalia still "dating" Alfred as his beard to avoid conflict with both of their parents. However, despite how hard they tried, Alfred's parents found out in the beginning of their senior year, and, after abusing him all throughout the school year, kicked him out and refused to pay for any of his college. And so, he simply didn't go. The same happened with Arthur, but they kicked him out because he needed to live on his own. Alfred got a job as a waiter at the restaurant Natalia worked part time as a chef at. However, at the end of her senior year of college, they were both fired. Which is how they got the idea for the flower shop: the two were sitting outside, glooming and waiting for Arthur to pick them up, when they were both admiring the flowers, and realized the town didn't really have a flower shop; after pitching the idea to Arthur, they were able to find and buy and abandoned lot next to a French bakery, right near the apartment complex all three were living in; after working lots of other part-time jobs and having friends donate, all three raised enough money to buy the store, and, lo and behold, Arlovskaya's Flowers was born, named after Natalia. Arthur, deciding to finish school, helped them out with minimal and unnecessary donations, which Natalia and Alfred decided to put away for something important, like necessary renovations. The grand-opening was a busy day, but not as busy as the other days were bound to be; thousands of people ordered a variety of flowers, from Felicia amelloides (which they didn't have), to red roses (which they had an abundance of). The two were overwhelmed with people coming in and out, and in the end, Arthur ended up helping them out. That night, at exactly 5:30, the store closed for the first time, and certainly not the last.

Suddenly, a flash of lightning illuminates the room. Alfred flinches and drops his plate, which was luckily paper.

"Thank God we live in the same apartment complex..." Natalia says, folding her arms over her stomach. "I think I should be heading home soon... thanks for having me." She stands up and picks her bag up, slinging it over her shoulder. "Do you guys have a generator? I do; if the power goes out, feel free to come to my place; my couch is large enough to fit two."

"Thanks; the storm is probably going to be bad." As Alfred speaks, another large flash of lighting strikes, followed by a loud crack of thunder. Alfred lets out a small whimper.

"I don't know about you Arty..." He stutters out. "But I'm taking up Nat's offer." He stood up, taking the blanket on his lap and wrapping it around his shoulders like a shawl; Arthur sighed and stood up, taking his beer bottle with him.

"Thanks, Nat," He says simply, following her as she walks to the elevator. Natalia pressed the button and steps into the spacious elevator; Alfred and Arthur walk in after her.

"Ooh, do you think Pixel will be awake? She's so fucking cute and I just want to squeeze her hubby little stomach and…" Alfred trails off, making various baby-talk noises. Arthur rolls his eyes, but reaches slightly up to hold his hand. Arthur was only an inch or two shorter than Alfred, but Alfred's boots and confident stance made him appear much taller. The elevator slowly went down, before finally reaching its second floor destination. Natalia leads the duo down the hall to her apartment, opening the door and using her foot to stop Pixel from attacking Alfred's leg.

"Baby!" Alfred yells, scooping up the black kitten in his arms. He wraps her in the quilt and carried her over to the couch. While he baby-talked the cat, Natalia sat on the kitchen counter and looked at her feet. Arthur leans on the counter across from her.

"So, how about that weather, eh?" Arthur awkwardly says, causing a small laugh from Natalia. "Are you positive you don't mind us spending the night? We can always just sleep in our apartment."

"In the cold and dark? No way: my couch is your bed tonight." She says, walking into the living room. "You two can set up the couch and make yourself comfortable. Good night," Natalia walks into her room, shutting the door behind her. Pixel would likely sleep in there with Alfred, and she'd somehow find a way in anyway. Natalia kicks off her shoes and peels off her shirt and pants. She crawls into bed, only in her black bra and underwear. Pulling her comforter over her shoulders, she stares out the window, into the city, watching lights flicker off and the city went to sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

Thursday, March 4th; 6:30 AM

It was a run of the mill work day for Natalia and Alfred: people were ordering all the green flowers they had for St. Patrick's Day, and 12:45 being their busiest time of day. Natalia head was bent over, looking down at her laptop screen, when the sound of a door opening causes her to look up: Lukas was walking through the side door, into the flower shop. Natalia clears her throat, tucks a piece of her bangs behind her ear, and could feel her face turning hot.

"How can I help you, Lukas?" She asks, refusing to stare him in the eye.

"Well, Natalia, seeing as you clearly have no tattoos, I was wondering if you'd like an exchange: I give you a couple free tattoos and you give me some small bouquets of flowers for my shop; thing about it, it'd be a little cross promotion: your tattoos would get people into my shop, your flowers into yours… Interested?" Lukas leans his arms on the table and stares up at Natalia. While he sounded persuasive, she was hesitant.

"I'll see. Have fun dealing with those customers." Natalia motions her head to the clear door, where a small line of clearly angry customers stood impatiently, Lukas' only partner going as fast as he could. She smiles as she begins typing away again.

That night, as Natalia stands in her kitchen, attempting to use a can opener one handed, she explains the situation to Alfred on the phone.

"Go for it!" was Alfred's immediate response. "This would be a great way for you two to bond while getting a tattoo AND a promotion!"

"I'm not sure, I've never seen any of his tattoos before plus I don't know if I can trust him…do you think a couple tattoos would be worth some bouquets?" Natalia rests the phone between her ear and shoulder as she continues to open the can.

"Of course, especially because he'll need to keep buying more flowers while the tattoos will last forever." Natalia sighs.

"Can you come by early tomorrow so I can get it before work? I also need time to pick where and what." She asks, placing the can of tuna on the floor for Pixel to enjoy; the cat runs over to the can and begins excitedly gobbling down the food.

"Sure thing, babe; see you then." And with that, Alfred hangs up. Natalia turns and goes into her bedroom. She pulls her sketchbook from her desk and sits on her bed with it on her lap. She had a few ideas on what tattoos she wanted, mainly a small lotus flower on her wrist and the Virgo symbol on the other. Using her pencil, she sketches and erases, until finally coming up with her desired designs. Natalia smiles smugly, proud of her drawings, then sets the paper on the floor, crawling into her bed.


	5. Chapter 5

Friday, March 5th; 5:02 AM

Natalia sat up in her bed, her eyes partially open. She was in her pajamas still, not wanting to get dressed quite yet. Alfred had yet to call with her wake up call, however Pixel kneading her chest had woken her up. Natalia stood up and peeled off her pajamas, then put her outfit on; quickly slipping on a pair of black Oxfords, Natalia grabs her bag, slung it over her shoulder, then walked out of the apartment. Heading to the elevator, she pulls her phone out and texted Alfred, warning him that she'd be walking in to fetch him. Still looking down, Natalia pushes the button to call for the elevator, continuing to look down as she walked in; feeling the presence of someone else with her, she looked up.

"Lukas!" Natalia exclaims, dropping her arms to her sides; the artist smiles, looking down at the florist.

"Fancy seeing you here, Natalia. Floor?" Lukas asks, motioning to the buttons. Natalia tells him Alfred's floor number. "Thought about that deal yet?"  
"As a matter of fact, yes," Natalia answers, leaning against the back elevator wall, arms crossed. "I have two ideas; thought about what flowers you want?"

"I was thinking about some white roses, or some black dahlias." Lukas examines his fingernails as he speaks. "They'd compliment the edginess of my parlor nicely, don't you agree?"

"Yeah, sure, I guess." Natalia says, having never actually been in his parlor since it was unfurnished. The doors opens on the fourth floor, and she steps out. "I'll see you later today." She says to Lukas, giving him a small wave. Before she even had the chance to walk down the hall to Alfred's apartment, she hears the door open and Alfred step out.

"Hey, Natalia!" He says, waving with a grin. "Ready for the tattoos?"

"More ready than I'll ever be…" She mumbles, pressing the elevator button once again while Alfred walks up next to her.

After an average work day, the time had come. Alfred flips the sign to 'Closed' and unties his apron. Natalia keeps hers on, not for any particular reason; her mind was occupied was things other than her apron. She leads Alfred into Lukas' parlor, where the artist was already washing his hands and putting on a pair of latex gloves. With the folded up paper containing her designs in her pocket, Natalia walked into the store more.

"We can start whenever you're ready," Lukas says, sitting on the small stool next to a chair. He prepares his needles while Natalia sat in the chair. She pulls the paper out of her pocket, and slowly unfolds it.

"I'd like this one," she points to the lotus. "on my right wrist, and this one," she points to the Virgo symbol. "behind my left ear. Think you can do that?" Lukas laughed.

"Of course I can; all black for both of them?" Natalia nodded, placing her right arm on the arm rest. Lukas studies the flower sketch, and slowly puts on what looked like a temporary tattoo on her wrist.

"What's that for?" Natalia asks, breaking the silence.

"It's basically so I can make sure your tattoo is inked perfectly without any mistakes." Lukas explains while looking up into Natalia's eyes, his voice soft and calm. Then, once the stencil was done, he explains how it may hurt a little bit, and she could ask for him to stop at any time. Once explained, Lukas begins the basic outline of the flower. Natalia was clearly in pain, her face tensed up, but didn't say anything. While his best friend was in pain, Alfred was spinning around on an identical chair to Lukas'. His was turning pale, however he didn't stop.

With Natalia's arm in his hand, Lukas walks over to a sink, giving the tattoo a soap and water rinse. He pats the area dry with a paper towel, then wraps a sterile bandage around her wrist. Lukas explains that there may be some bleeding, and to put some anti-bacterial ointment on it every once in a while, and to rinse the tattoo with warm water in an hour or so.

"Before rewrapping it with plastic wrap, make sure the tattoo is completely dry. You ready to start on your other one? I'll need you to tie your hair up before I begin." Lukas says; Natalia nods in response, tying her hair up with a hair tie. He scoots his chair up closer up to her's, repeating the same process. Natalia was obviously in much more pain this time, with her arm clenched up.

"Keep your head perfectly still," Lukas says, placing his left hand into Natalia's right one; immediately, she begins to squeeze it until it begins to turn a light shade of red. Seeing this, she loosens her grip, but only enough to get the blood flowing. Natalia closes her eyes tight, trying to focus on other things to keep her mind off of the pain, such as the store, renovations needed to the store, and that adorable white kitten she saw at the shelter that she'd like to get; her mind, being so full of other, random thoughts, that Natalia didn't notice any pain, or when Lukas finished.

"All done," He says, placing the tattoo gun down. "Let's go wash this now." Natalia was still holding his hand as leads her back over to the sink. He lowers her head down enough for him to cleanse the tattoo, pat it dry, and apply a sterile bandage. The perimeter of the bandage was adhesive, allowing it to stick to her skin. "The same rules for the flower tattoo apply, except you won't be able to put cling wrap around it; you'll have to use a similar adhesive bandage." Natalia place her free hand to the bandaged tattoo, and looks up at Lukas. There was a long silence, before Lukas reaches to hold Natalia's other hand; the two stand there, holding hands, and staring into each other's eyes, before Alfred coughs and breaks the silence. Natalia drops her hands and blushes.

"I'll bring your flowers over in a moment. Have a good day…" She says, walking out with Alfred close behind; Alfred turns around, winks at Lukas, then shuts the door between the stores. Natalia stands behind the counter as Alfred flips the sign from 'Closed' to 'Open'. She ties her apron on, then goes into the back where the giant stock of unordered flowers sat, occasionally sprayed by a mist. Walking through the aisle of bouquets, she picks out a bouquet of white dahlias and another of black dahlias. With them in her arms, Natalia walks back over to the parlor, opening the door with her back.

"Lukas?" She asks, glancing around the store; the only person there was Lukas' assistant, who's name she had yet to learn. "Hey, you seen Lukas? He was just in here a moment ago…"

"Yeah, he just went outside." The assistant looks up briefly, motions to the door, then goes back to cleaning up the shop. Natalia carries the bouquets, now getting heavier the longer she carried them, outside. Lukas stood there against the wall some ways from the door, with one leg bent and against it. Not having noticed Natalia yet, he opens the pack, takes a cigarette out, and begins unrolling the paper. Then, much to her surprise, crumbles the paper up and begins eating the insides.

"What are you doing?" Natalia asks, still standing in front of the door. The sun was setting, creating a warm, orange glow in the sky.

"They're chocolate cigarettes; want one?" Lukas extends his arm, pack in hand. She walks over, places the bouquets on the concrete, then takes one. Following his example, she unwrapped the wax paper and took a small bite of the chocolate. She vocalizes her approval of the taste, and takes another bite.

"Pretty good," she says. "Why do you have these instead of normal chocolate bars?" Lukas smiled and closed the pack.

"In order to maintain my edgy persona, I carry a pack of these in back pocket everywhere I go; it's funny watching people get confused when I eat one." He shoves the pack into his pack pocket then looks up to Natalia. "They're lovely flowers," Lukas motions to the bouquets on the ground. "mind helping me carry them in?" He bends over and picks up both, then hands one to Natalia. The two silently walk back toward the door; a soft violin and cello duet was playing from the speakers outside the bakery, performing a soft and romantic song.

"Nice music, don't you think?" Natalia says, nodding her head up to the speakers.

"It's gorgeous…you know what else is gorgeous?" She blushes and asks what. "The sunset; I love the colors and how they mix together." Her shoulders drop, along with her smile.

"Yeah, it's beautiful." Natalia walks into Lukas' store and follows him over to a shelf along the wall. They placed the bouquets side-by-side on the shelf and stand there awkwardly, facing each other and refusing to look into the other's eyes. "Um…thanks for the tattoos." She holds up her wrist to examine the bandage.

"Yeah…thanks for the flowers." Lukas' holds one of the pedals in-between his fingers and feels the texture. "Talk to you tomorrow, okay?" He smiles and leans in; Natalia's breathing stops, as Lukas gives her a small peck on the cheek. As he walks into the back, she turns to the door: Alfred is standing there, his hands against the door, staring intently at her with a giant grin on his face. Natalia blushes and pushes through the door. The two say nothing to each other as Natalia hangs up her apron and grabs her bag.

"What?" She finally asks, noticing Alfred staring at her, still grinning.

"He kissed you." Was all he said.

"So what? It was just a tiny peck." Natalia frowns and begins to walk out of the store.

"But it was still a kiss!" Alfred follows close behind, his coat folded and hanging over his bent arm. "He's totally madly in love with you."

"He is not, Al!" The two walk down the street under the streetlights, which slowly started flickering on as the sun set more. "I don't know what happened, we were just talking and putting the flowers away and then he just leaned in and kissed me. Don't tell anyone but Arty about this, okay? I don't want our other friends thinking I'm dating him or anything." Natalia walks into the apartment complex and to the stairs.

"Goodnight, Nat," Alfred says, waving as he waited for the elevator. She nods and smiles as a form of 'goodbye' before she continues the flight up to her apartment.


	6. Chapter 6

She couldn't think about anything else but him. Natalia's mind prevented her from sleeping, only focusing on Lukas: how he leaned against the wall, the way his voice became soft and quiet when he was talking to her, and, of course, the tiny peck of a kiss. She rolls out of her bed and sat in her windowsill, staring out at the city lights; she could barely make out the strip mall their shops were in, and the lights outside them. Natalia rests her head against the window as she feels Pixel hop up onto the windowsill, walking over to her; the cat, with droopy eyes, lay down on her owner's lower stomach, and fell fast asleep. She slowly strokes Pixel's back and nape as she stares lovingly down.

Natalia walks into the store 10 minutes after opening, her hair a slight mess. Alfred raises an eyebrow as she walks behind the counter to get your apron.

"I couldn't find the key you gave me and you wouldn't wake up…something okay?" His voice full of concern, he places a hand on her shoulder. Natalia laughs.

"I overslept, that's all; my mind was too full of thoughts from yesterday to fall asleep, plus Pixel was affectionate." She reaches behind her back and ties her apron tight around her waist. "How many customers have I missed?"

"Well, only a few, including Lukas, wondering where you were and to get some more of those flowers you gave him. You should go over and talk to him, he seemed like he wanted to talk." Alfred went back to filling out a delivery form. Natalia sighs, and attempts to straighten her hair as she walks through the door to the tattoo parlor.

"Nat!" Lukas says, looking up from his book; Saturdays were apparently slow days, which resulted in Lukas sitting around waiting for someone to walk in. He places his book facedown on the table and stands up, wiping his hands on his pants.

"Alfred said you wanted to talk to me-" Natalia was suddenly cut off by Lukas placing his hands under her hair on her cheeks and planting a kiss on her lips. She gave in for a few seconds, then pushes him away; Lukas was clearly embarrassed, his face red and tucking his arms under his arms.

"I'm sorry, I really wasn't thinking and I was just overwhelmed from last night…" He speaks fast, closing his eyes and sighing at the end. "I'm sorry." He says again, looking down.

"Lukas…" was all Natalia was able to say, placing a hand on his shoulder. "It's okay. I understand." She steps closer to him, and plants a small kiss on his cheek. Her other hand moves up to his other shoulder, pulling his chest closer to her's. Natalia's eyes slowly closed and her arms slowly wrapped around Lukas' neck. Thankfully, no customers or Lukas' assistant walked into the shop during those few moments, as the two slowly moved over to the wall with Natalia being pressed against it. Lukas's hands moved down, resting on her hips; suddenly, a lough coughing was heard, causing the two to instantly break apart. Natalia blushes and looks down, while Lukas scratches his head. Alfred had opened the door, and likely seen the whole thing.

"I see you two had a nice talk." He says, grinning. "I was just coming in to see if you were okay, I'll leave now." Alfred walks back into the flower shop, shutting the door behind him. Natalia couldn't help but laugh. She covers her face, but even that couldn't muffle her laughter.

"His timing could not have been worse." Lukas says, frowning slightly. His hands find their way back to Natalia's hips, softly resting on them. He stares into her eyes, looking like he was trying to figure something out.

"You're a very strange girl, Natalia…but for some reason I love you all the same." He gives her one final kiss on her cheek before walking away, through the door leading to the back of the parlor. Natalia takes this as her cue to leave, and herself walks back into her shop. There were no customers in sight, and Alfred had jumped onto the counter, his legs dangling off the side. His phone, on and in his hands, was emitting loud sound effects. When he notices Natalia, he places his phone in his pocket and hops off.

"Hope I didn't interrupt something back then, Nat. Want to close shop for a bit and grab some lunch?" Alfred already begins taking off his apron and grabbing his jacket. Natalia nods with a smile, doing the same.

It was a cool spring early afternoon, with a light breeze blowing through the duo's hair. They walk abreast down the sidewalk, to the small diner down the street. Natalia holds the door open as Alfred walks in and sits down at a small booth against a window. A waitress on roller-skates glides over holding out two menus for them to look at. As she skated away, Natalia holds her menu up, examining it.

"So, about Lukas…" Alfred says, reaching over to pull Natalia's menu down onto the table. Her blushing face, now revealed, looked down.

"Could we not talk about that right now?" She asks quietly. Alfred laughs, but picks up his menu. The waitress comes gliding over again, and takes their orders. With a large smile, she brings Natalia's tea and Alfred's water. She takes their orders and skates away again, taking the menus and tucking them under her arm.

"Listen, I know you clearly have feelings for him, but neither of you have even discussed that yet."

"Again, could you not? There has to be something else you can talk about…" Natalia shuffles uncomfortably in her seat.

"Well, there is this," Alfred withdraws a small satin box from his coat pocket, emitting a gasp and shriek of excitement from Natalia.

"Tell me that's a ring!" She exclaims, reaching over to grab if from Alfred's hands.

"We've been dating since we were freshmen, and what you said earlier this year really stuck with me." Natalia opens the box as he spoke, careful as to not touch the actual ring; it was silver, with a gold lining on the top and bottom all around.

"What's that on the inside?" She asks, handing the box back.

"Oh, I payed a little extra to have our initials inscribed on the inner band…" Alfred closes the box and slips it back in his pocket. "Whatever you do, don't tell Arthur; I'm planning on doing it in a couple weeks."

"Oh my god, of course I won't! I'm so excited for you two!" Natalia squeals like a little girl, overwhelmed with joy. Alfred laughs and glances out the window.

"Yeah, me, too…" He says as the waitress came over.


	7. Chapter 7

Friday, March 12th; 6:52 PM

Occasionally, Friday nights were spent at the local bar for the trio. They sit at the counter, laughing and sipping their drinks. Over the loud, blaring rock music, the bell over the door could clearly be heard, in turn causing Natalia to tilt her head toward the door; standing there is Lukas and someone else. The man next to him is around half a foot shorter, with gray hair. The two walk over to the bar, toward Natalia.

"Lukas! What're you doing here?" she asks as the he sits down next to her. "And who's this?"  
"Natalia, this is my younger brother, Emil. He was nervous about a date here and I volunteered to chaperone." Lukas ruffles Emil's hair and smiles. "And Emil, this is the girl I was telling you about, Natalia. She works in the flower shop next door."

"Who's the lucky person?" Natalia asks, turning her bar stool to face them.

"I met him in one of my classes…" Emil blushes as he talks about the boy. "He should be here in ten minutes or so."

"I'll be sitting a few tables away, in case it doesn't go too well. Aren't I such a good big bro?" Lukas again ruffles Emil's hair.

"Please, don't remind me…" He leaves to sit at a barstool on the other side of the bar. Lukas sits down at the bar, right next to Natalia. He orders a drink, a simple bottled beer, and takes a sip.

"So, why are you and them here?" Lukas motions to Alfred and Arthur. Natalia turns her head to see the two engaged in a tipsy conversation, which included Arthur in an existential crisis regarding religion. They had clearly had five too many drinks.

"It's just a little thing we do every once in a while." Natalia turns her head back to look to Lukas. "It's nice seeing you out of work, although it is a surprise that Emil would come here for a date, a first one at that." She takes another sip of her cocktail.

"I guess neither of them are the romantic type, eh?" Lukas laughs and looks down into his bottle. "Anyway, how've you been? Found anyone special since we last talked?"

"No, not quite," She laughs and glances over at him. "What about you? Or are you envious or your brother and came here to see what you were missing?"

"I'm still single…" His face is clearly a slight shade of red. Natalia can't help but wonder why. She is about to say something before he speaks.

"You're looking nice tonight; can I buy you a drink?" Lukas asks, preparing to take his wallet out again.

"Oh! Oh, thanks, but I'm good with this. I don't want you to waste your money on me." Natalia said.

"Why wouldn't I?" Lukas asks, his tone serious. He then turns to the bartender. "Hey! A beer for the lady!" He says, before placing a five dollar bill on the counter. A bottle of Budweiser is placed in front of Natalia.

"You really didn't have to do that." She says, however still takes a sip. "You're really sweet, Lukas, you know that?" He blushes and smirks.

"Thanks, you're not too shabby either." He gives her a friendly nudge and the two laugh. Natalia takes a swig of her beer and coughs awkwardly.

"Anyway, are you doing anything else tonight? I was going to hang here until Emil shoos me away, however if you're free I may just change my mind." Lukas asks, turning in the barstool to look at Natalia.

"Well, I figured Arthur and Al would leave after a while to head back to their place to do whatever, and I'd head home. Do you have any ideas?" Natalia responds, trying to play it cool but clearly excited.

"I have an old friend from college who invited me to a house party of his that I was going to just skip, but if you're up for it he lives a few blocks from here. Wanna head over?" Lukas already starts getting his jacket on, as if already knowing what Natalia would say.

"Yeah, I'd love to go to a party." Natalia says, slipping her leather jacket on.

"He used to be pretty shy, it should be just a small and quiet party." Lukas says as they walk out of the door, leaving the drunken Arthur and Alfred to their devices.

It was not a small and quiet party. The second Lukas and Natalia walk through the door, the loud sound of Danish heavy metal pierces their ears. The large house, being packed full of people, seemed endless from the doorway.

"Come with me, I want you to come meet the guy." Lukas takes Natalia's hand and manages to lead her through the large crowd to a small kitchen, where a man in boxers speckled with the Danish flag and a Viking helmet-donned head stood, playing a double-headed axe as if it were a guitar.

"Lukas!" The man yells over the music, motioning to someone who turns the volume down. "Hey, what's up! Haven't seen you since we were roommates." He hops off the table and gives Lukas a bro hug. "Who's this? Finally found yourself a lady, eh?"

"Mathias, this is Natalia, a girl I know that I decided to take here. Natalia, this is the infamous Mathias Køhler, my roommate when I was in university." Lukas and Natalia wave goodbye to Mathias, who raises the music volume again. They walk around the house, going with the grain.

"I think there's a secluded hot tub here, want to check it out?" Lukas asks once they finally find a quiet spot in the sunroom.

"I don't have a swim suit with me, do you think Mathis has any?" Natalia asks.

"Nah, but you'll be fine, I don't have one either. Listen, we don't have to go unless you're comfortable."

"I'll be fine, it's not like I haven't been skinny dipping before." Natalia and Lukas laugh.

"Alright, let's go find that hot tub then." Lukas takes Natalia's hand as they stand up and walk onto the connected porch. Down the stairs they walk, following a stone pathway to a thick group of trees. Skeptical, they hesitate, but press on once seeing a light. The two follow that light to an in ground hot tub inside the tree grouping.

"Wow, this is nice; really far away and hidden." Natalia says, looking into the bubbling water. She turns to look at Lukas, who has already begun taking off his shirt.

"What, changed your mind?" He smirks, pulling the tank top over his head.

"Hah, you wish." Natalia replies, taking off her jacket and shoes. Soon, they're both down to they undergarments, both too uncomfortable to strip anymore.

"How about we take everything off underwater, if that'd make you comfortable," Lukas says, clearly trying to play cool.

"Yeah, if you want," Natalia shrugs in the same attitude, stepping down into the hot water. She sits down on the bench, waiting for Lukas to sit down across from her before fully undressing. The two place their dripping undergarments next to their clothes and sit awkwardly in the hot tub. Lukas stands up suddenly and walks over to Natalia, who he sits next to. He wraps his arm around her shoulder and rests his head on hers. Natalia, in turn, leans against him and closes her eyes. They sit there in silence, simply enjoying the other's presence and the warmth of the hot tub. It was after a short while that Lukas kisses Natalia's head and moves his hand slightly downward on her chest. Natalia turns her head up to look up at him, then closes her eyes and reaches up to kiss him.

"I love you, Nat, and I really want you to tell me you want this before we continue." Lukas holds Natalia's head in his hands, staring into her eyes as he awaits her consent. She nods.

"I want this, Lukas. I love you, too; I haven't felt this way with anyone else before you." She says, before wrapping her arms around Lukas' neck and kissing him passionately. His hands reached around her back, pulling her onto his lap. Things were just about to get heated, the only sounds in the secluded area being their heavy breathing, when the bushes could be hear separating, followed by a gasp and a laugh.

"Nice, dude!" says Mathias, using his hand to cover all but Lukas and Natalia's heads. "I couldn't find you and wanted to see if you had enough beer tonight. Don't forget to use protection, okay?" Mathias walks back, the sound of his laughs slowly becoming quieter. Lukas and Natalia turn their heads to look at each other, and couldn't help but laugh.

"You wanna come back to my place tonight? It's pretty close and my roommate is away." Lukas asks, his hands resting on Natalia's hips. He receives a nod from her.

"Sure, that would be great." Natalia smiles and gives Lukas another kiss before sliding off his lap to get dressed.


	8. Chapter 8

_i realized after writing this whole chapter that i hadn't mentioned nat being a gymnastics coach since like the second or third chapter. so yeah. had to rewrite most of it. enjoy._

* * *

Saturday, March 13th; 12:42 PM

The walk to Natalia's apartment was a long one, however being with Lukas made it seem like an instant. She held his hand as she led him to the stairs, and then down the hall to her apartment. The two stood in front of the door, staring at each other.

"Well, this seems like something out of a teenage romance movie," Natalia laughs and rocks on her heels. Lukas smiles and looks down, before leaning down to kiss Natalia.

"Good night, Nat; I'll see you tomorrow." He says, giving her hand a quick squeeze before turning and walking away.

That night seemed like a moment of déjà vu for Natalia: laying in her bed, Lukas the only thing on her mind. She tosses and turns in her bed, staring at the wall and ceiling. Her heart was pounding in anticipation, not being able to wait for work Sunday to see Lukas again. Nevertheless, sleep was a necessity: early in the morning was a gymnastics practice for a competition in two weeks' time. Alfred and Arthur were obviously expected to attend the event, and part of the practice to walk to whatever their Saturday plans were. They had no plans for that day, meaning they'd likely sit around the store, laughing and listening to music. Finally, once her mind cleared of thought, Natalia was finally able to doze off.

Natalia jolted up in her bed, turning to look at her clock: she had five minutes to get ready and then ten to get to the gym. As quickly as possible, she pulled her messy hair up and changed into her leggings and the team's pale blue t-shirt. Grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl on the counter, her bag, and her shoes, she runs out the door and down the stairs. Walking as quickly as one who's barefoot could, she juggles everything in her arms until she hears a car honk; turning her head, Natalia sees Lukas in a grey car.

"Need a ride?" He asks, leaning his head out the window. Natalia laughs as she walks over to the car.

"Thank god you're here," she says, sliding into the passenger seat. "Head down this road here; do you know where Five Star Gym is?" Natalia asks, pulling on her sneakers.

"Yeah, I pass it every day on my way to the store." Too early for anyone to be on the road, Lukas drives as fast as he could without getting pulled over. In that quick time, Natalia is able to appear presentable _and_ eat her "breakfast".

"I really appreciate this, I woke up two minutes ago realizing I had to be at the gym in five minutes." She laughs and rests her head against the window.

"So, why are you headed to the gym at this hour?" Lukas asks, maintaining the fast speed.

"Oh, I never told you, did I: I teach gymnastics to a group of 12 year olds at the gym. We have a competition in a couple of weeks, and I want to start getting them ready for waking up this early and still have enough energy to compete." Natalia sits up straight as they near the gym.

"Really? That's interesting; anyway, would you like me to pick you up? I was just going shopping and I should be done soon." Lukas asks, stopping in front of the gym; Natalia still had a few minutes.

"You know what? That would be great, really. Thank you, Lukas." She says, about to step out, until she leans in and kisses him. "I'll see you in an hour?" With that, Natalia slings her bag on her back and struts through the double glass doors. Down the long hall she walks, until arriving in the main gym; sitting on the bleachers were all her students in their plain black practice leotards. As soon as Natalia walks through the door, their backs become perfectly straight and their heads turn toward her; this emits a laugh from her.

"At ease, I need a few minutes to gather some things from my office and then we'll begin." She claps her hands together and walks into the small office: sitting on the floor are two boxes, neatly on top of her chair. Natalia squeals in delight, and drops her bag on the desk. She quickly grabs her whistle and clipboard from her desk, then a small knife and picks up the boxes; carrying them into the main gym, she drops them on the floor to get everyone's attention.

"Everyone, form a circle around me!" Natalia says to her students before sitting down on the floor and cutting open the top box. The kids run over, standing in a messy formation. "Thanks to your parents and the fundraisers we've done, the team was able to afford these." Picking up a red and blue jacket from the box, she turns it over to read the back.

"Ana! Come get your jacket!" Natalia hands the jacket to the excited girl, who immediately puts it on. She goes through the entire box, up until the last kid. At the bottom of the box is a larger jacket, the name on the back reading "COACH NATALIA". She puts on her jacket, then smiles.

"Now, the fun part! Leotards!" Opening the other box, Natalia reveals matching blue and red leotards, with a bedazzled stripe crossing over to front, from the single strap to the bottom. She looks down at the top paper, then at the label inside the top one. Natalia goes through the list, calling out names according to sizes. "Put these away in your bags and don't forget to wear them at the competition!" She yells as the kids dart over to shove the jackets and leotards in their bags. She herself pulls out a larger leotard for herself and, with her jacket, puts them neatly in her bag; at the end of every competition, there was a little coach competition, meant to be silly and fun for the kids to watch. It was often found to calm the nerves of competitors who didn't do too well and have them laugh it off. Plus it ensured that the coaches stayed in shape as a good example.

"Everyone, head over to the rings, I want to show you a good technique for your routines." Natalia walked over to the rings as the group of eager children ran over. "First, don't forget to chalk your hands; this ensures that if you're nervous and have sweaty hands you don't slip and break your arm or whatever." She dips her hands in the large, elevated basin of the chalk powder, then clasp them together. "Second, obviously, approach the rings and grab on; you all have remarkably strong arms as gymnasts, meaning the next step should be easy." Natalia holds onto the rings facing the huddle of students sitting down, then lifts herself up with her arms. "Simply push yourself up and do your routine; an easy one would be this…" The lesson goes on, with each students doing as she showed after her through all the different "stations." The lesson, running late, lasts half an hour over the expected end time: parents would grow anxious, sitting in the lobby waiting for their precious gymnast. Natalia is just about to show an example on the double bars when the doors are heard opening.

"Natalia?" a soft voice can be heard, causing everyone's head to turn.

"Lukas!" Natalia exclaims, brushing the chalk off her hands. "Oh god, we're overtime; everyone go get your shoes and jackets on, it's a bit chilly outside. When you're all packed up, go meet your parents. Don't forget to show them your new jackets and leotards!" The small children dart over to the bleachers, a few stealing glances at Lukas and his tattoos.

"I was waiting in the lobby, but too many of the moms were staring at me." He says with a laugh, hugging and kissing Natalia. "You look good for someone who's been in a humid gym for and hour and a half."

"Thanks, let me go get my bags." She says, turning her head to glance at the bleachers: none of her students had left yet, and all of them were staring at Lukas and Natalia.

"Is he your boyfriend?" One bluntly asked, pointing at Lukas, whose face turns a dark red. The rest, including Natalia, laugh.

"Yeah, I guess you could call him that." Natalia says, putting her new jacket on and slinging her bag onto her back. "Come on, go find your parents and get some food in you." She shoos them out through the doors, leaving Natalia alone with Lukas.

"They're a cute group of kids." He says, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah, sorry if they embarrassed you back there." She replies, taking his hand and walking out behind the kids. "They're really sweet, but kids nonetheless."

"I parked out back, this way." Lukas says, pointing around the corner. "Yeah, I believe it; how was the practice? What's with the sparkling thing in your bag?" They climb in the car, Natalia pulling her leotard out of the bag.

"At the competitions they have coaches do a little competition of their own, and I got a leotard that matches the rest of the team's. Ah, you should have seen their faces when I showed them their own jackets and leotards. This is their first competition and I wanted us to be all matchy-matchy." She puts it away and buckles up. "So, have any plans for today besides the shopping?"  
"Actually, I wanted to know the same from you; some friends happened to get tickets for a certain special violinist tonight…" Lukas holds up a pair of tickets in his hand; Natalia snatches them and gasps.

"No…" She says, her jaw dropping when she reads the name. "You got Alexander Rybak tickets? The concert has been sold out for months!"

"I got them when they first went on sale, but the friend I wanted to go with decided he didn't want to go. When you told me you liked him all those weeks ago, I immediately knew I wanted to take you." Lukas starts the car and pulls out of the parking lot. "Want to head to my place? My roommate isn't home and we could just hang out alone." He stalls in the exit, turning his head to Natalia and awaiting his answer.

"That would be cool, I'd love to see your place." Natalia smiles and leans back in her seat as Lukas turns and drives down the long road.

"I meant it when I said you looked nice just then." He says, his eyes not drifting from the road ahead of him. "I love your hair in ponytails, you look absolutely beautiful."

"I'm all sweaty and gross smelling though." Natalia laughs, brushing the loose ends of hair from her eyes. "I hardly seem attractive." She glances at herself in the mirror. "I'm not even wearing any makeup."

"You're gorgeous, trust me." Lukas leans over and pecks her cheek. "You hardly ever wear makeup and I still fell in love with you."  
"I do still thinks it's funny how we end up living in the same complex, and yet we never met each other until work." Natalia pulls up a leg and rests her chin on her knee.

"That is hilarious, now that you mention it." Lukas chuckles and pulls into a parking spot marked with the number 721. "All right, let's head in; you got all your bags and whatnot?" Lukas asks, unbuckling and opening his door. Natalia picks up her bag and opens her own door, sliding out. He locks the car as she gets out and walks over to him.

"Frankly, I've never been past the fourth floor." Natalia admits, walking next to Lukas to the elevator. He presses the "7" button and they ride up, the typical elevator music playing loud. The door opens on the seventh floor, causing Natalia to follow Lukas out and down the hall.

"People are just now waking up, so be quiet, okay?" His feet, soft and silent as he walks down the hall, barely touch the floor, and yet he still walks quickly. Natalia follows close behind, holding onto his hand. He pulls out a key from a large ring, then opens door 721. "Home sweet home," Lukas says, closing the door behind Natalia. She is about to say something, however the sound of heavy metal music is heard from somewhere in the apartment.

"Oh my god, I thought he was on a date…" Lukas runs down the hallway and opens a door; the moment he opens it, the music instantly became ear-numbing. "Tino! Turn off the music!" Lukas yells over the music; Natalia runs next to him, expecting the man in the bedroom to look similar to Lukas with tattoos. Instead, she sees a man around her height in a pale blue sweater holding knitting needles and yarn in his lap.

"Hello," Tino waves to Natalia. "I'm Tino, Lukas' roommate and lifelong friend." He places the knitting items on the rocking chair he sat in and walks over. Tino appeared to have a permanent smile on his face, even as he talked. "Berwald said he'd be picking me up in a few minutes so I decided to start making him little gift; do you think he'll like a scarf?"

"He's smitten with you, it may not seem like it but he'll love it." Lukas assures him, cracking a smile. "Just keep the music down and come find me when you leave." Tino waves goodbye and closes the door behind Lukas as he walks away. The music immediately starts up again, this time slightly quieter. Natalia can't help but smile as she follows Lukas to what she assumes was his bedroom: it is modern looking, with his desk being really the only punk thing about it. It is pure black, with stickers from bands and other things on it. On top of the desk, in a magazine folder, are yearbooks from the local high school.

"You grew up around here?" Natalia asks, sitting down at the desk and grabbing one of the yearbooks.

"Oh god, please don't look through those…" Lukas says while blushing, taking a seat on his gray bed. Natalia flips through the pages, and, after a moment, finds Lukas' page.

"Oh lordie…" she says, her thumb grazing over his picture. "I thought you were emo now." Lukas had black hair and a face full of piercings, including long and dangling chain earrings. He was wearing a black heavy metal band tanktop, and a necklace with a cross on it. As she begins laughing, Lukas comes over and snatches it away.

"They gradually got better, this is only junior year. I got rid of the piercings, except this ear one." He tucks some hair behind his ear to show Natalia a small stud earring. "I still wear the same shirts, except not with necklaces like that. You know I used to wear fake tattoos?" Lukas sits back down on the bed and looks at Natalia with a half smile.

"No," she says in disbelief. "oh my god, there were so many kids who would do that in my school. I lived in the Midwest, which made this funnier and there was this group of emo and scene kids who would wear fake piercings and fake tattoos, oh it was hilarious!" The two of them laugh. Natalia grabs a second yearbook and goes over to the bed; she lays down, and Lukas follows. She lifts the yearbook above their heads and flips through the pages, until landing on Lukas'.

"Yeah, see, I only had a few nose and like three earrings. Plus this is the year I decided to bleach my hair." Lukas takes the yearbook and examines closer. "I'm still wearing smudged eyeliner though, let me fetch my junior and senior ones." He drops the yearbook on the bed as he stands to get the other two. "Ah, yeah, junior is when I got rid of the rest of the piercings and fake tattoos." Lukas passes the junior year book to Natalia and opens the senior year book. The hair color Lukas had then was still darker than it is currently, making Natalia deduce he bleached it again. She flips through the back of the book, spotting Lukas in the art club, music club, and the Science Olympiad. He's sitting in a dark auditorium in a black shirt with the tournament's logo on it, a giant smile on his face. He's holding a large trophy, sitting next to a boy in glasses and the same shirt.

"Wait, you were in the Science Olympiad?" Natalia chuckles at the thought.

"Mhm, that's where I met Mathias. We dated for our junior and sophomore years, however broke up at the end of the year when we went to different colleges." Lukas points to the boy next to him. "That's Mathias,"

"Wait, seriously? He had glasses?" Natalia turns her head as Lukas lays back down.

"Yeah, and pretty dorky ones, as you can see." Lukas takes the one she's holding and hands her the open one. "Senior year; my hair at it's lightest, my piercings minimal, and zero fake tattoos. I was really happy that year; I was only 18, but I knew what I wanted to do with my life: Mathias and I would graduated from our separate colleges, then move into the city. He wanted to be a 6th grade math teacher, and even then I wanted to be some kind of artist. However, I met Tino one day at an old record shop. There was some issue and the cashier was being an ass to Berwald, Tino's boyfriend, and Tino got in front of them and started yelling at the cashier." As he talks, Natalia looks at his most recent photo; his hair was indeed the same light color as currently, and he had only the earrings.

"Well, anyway, I helped Tino tell off the worker, who was later fired; we kept in touch, and when Tino heard I had no place to live, let me live with him." Lukas closes the yearbook and drops it on the carpet floor. He turns to his side to face Natalia, who places her book on the floor and turns as well. The space in between them slowly decreased, until only an inch remained between their faces; Natalia, of course, makes the first move by kissing Lukas on the nose. He smiles, then wraps an arm around her waist.

"I love you, Natalia." Lukas says simply, staring deep int her eyes.

"I love you more." She responds, nuzzling her head into his chest. "I'm so glad I met you." They lay there in the silence, eventually drifting off to the sound of muffled heavy metal.


End file.
